Pingyi Han Dynasty Que (Huangshengqing Que and Gongcao Que)

Pingyi Han Dynasty Que (Huangshengqing Que and Gongcao Que)

The Pingyi Han Dynasty Que (Huangshengqing Que and Gongcao Que) is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Huangshengqing Que and Gongcao Que

The Pingyi Han Dynasty Que consists of two Huangshengqing Ques and one Gongcao Que. These three que were originally located on Jiuding Lotus Mountain, about two li northwest of Pingyi County in Linyi City, and were moved to the Third Primary School in Pingyi County in 1932. The Huangshengqing Que was built in the third year of the Yuanhe era during the Eastern Han Dynasty (86 AD), and the Gongcao Que was built in the first year of the Zhanghe era (87 AD). These three que are famous Han Dynasty stone que in China and serve as important materials for studying Han Dynasty que and architecture.

Que is a traditional type of ancient Chinese architecture. The term first appeared in the “Book of Songs · Zheng Feng · Zijin”: “Even if I do not go, would you not bind your hair? Frivolous and carefree, you are at the city gate towers.” What kind of building is a que? According to Guangya: “Que means a gate tower.” Shuowen Jiezi states: “Que is a gate tower, formed from the characters for gate and que.” In modern terms, a que is an elevated structure built on either side of the road in front of a gate. Based on materials, they can be divided into earthen que and stone que. Earthen que originated in the Western Zhou Dynasty, mostly built in front of palaces. They were not only important decorations for palaces but also places where state policies and decrees were proclaimed, making them indispensable structures at the time. Due to the long passage of time, no earthen que from the Western Zhou Dynasty have survived. Stone que, which became popular starting in the Eastern Han Dynasty, were typically relocated from in front of palaces to in front of ancestral halls or tombs, and some have been preserved to this day.

Further Reading:

· First Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units